Days ago Islamic State issued its Ramadan message, a grim call to violence to its supporters across the globe. “Muslims, embark and hasten toward jihad,” its chief propagandist, Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, instructed in a speech released online. “Oh, holy warriors everywhere, rush and go to make

Islamic State militants launched a massive suicide attack on the Kurdish Syrian border town of Kobani yesterday, its first raid there since being driven out five months ago. About 36 Isis fighters riding in a convoy of five vehicles drove into Kobani just after dawn, detonating one car bomb next

Kurdish fighters were advancing on Raqqa, the de facto Islamic State capital, last night after seizing a military base controlled by the jihadists and driving them out of the adjacent town with the help of coalition airstrikes. Isis lost the Brigade 93 base at dawn yesterday, followed by the town

Fears were mounting for the historic ruins of Palmyra yesterday after activists in the Syrian city reported that Islamic State militants had laid explosives around its most famous temple. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in Britain, and a local group, Palmyra News Updates, reported

Fears were mounting today for the safety of the ancient ruins of Palmyra after activists in the area reported that Islamic State militants had laid explosives around its most iconic temple. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, along with a local group, Palmyra News Updates

The CIA drone strike that killed al-Qaeda’s second in command last week was a lucky hit aimed at a random group of militants, say US officials. Nasser al-Wuhayshi was among the throng targeted by the drone in a “signature strike” which permits operators to fire on unknown individuals exhibiting

Nearly 60 million people are displaced around the world after being driven from their homes by war or persecution in a wave of forced migration unprecedented in history. The startling new figure, just shy of the total population of Britain, was released by the United Nations yesterday in a report

At least 30 people were killed and dozens wounded when five explosions hit Shia targets in the Yemeni capital at the last evening prayers before the beginning of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan. Four bombs hit mosques in Sanaa while another detonated at the home of an official from the Houthis

Qassim al-Rimi, the new leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian peninsula, is as familiar with plotting attacks on the West as he is with directing military operations on Yemeni soil. AQAP’s former military commander, he has also taken a lead role in orchestrating attacks abroad and recruiting militants

Al-Qaeda has announced the death of Nasser al-Wuhayshi, its second in command, in a US drone strike in Yemen — the heaviest blow the terrorist network has suffered since the assassination of Osama bin Laden. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the group’s branch in Yemen, broke the news in a